Beyoncé On Twitter: 400,000 Followers But No Tweets

Posted 10/08/2009 12:20:47 pm
by MTV News.

By Matt Thompson, with additional reporting by James Dinh

Though Twitter has overtaken the likes of LiveJournal, MySpace and even official Web sites as the way musicians keep in touch with their fans, Beyoncé‘s enthusiasm is certainly not as great as those around her. There is an unverified account with her name on it that has amassed nearly 400,000 followers, but there has yet to be a single tweet dispatched. Whether it’s a real account is up for debate (it probably isn’t), but it does make one thing clear: There is obviously demand for B’s tweets, but she’s not about to share. In fact, Beyoncé said back in April, “My sister is the Twitter queen. She told me about the twittering. I feel like I’m getting really old … I’m like, ‘What? I don’t understand. Just call me.’ I don’t get it.” Her aversion to the service may have even influenced husband Jay-Z, who has only made 13 posts since he registered nearly a year ago.

Celebrities such as Ashton Kutcher and John Mayer have turned Twitter into their own personal cottage industries, regularly filing 140 character dispatches about new projects but also about banal, everyday observations. But clearly they’ve tapped into something that has demand — after all, Kutcher has picked up an astonishing 3,784,966 followers (and counting). But the stance taken by Beyoncé and Jigga may be catching on, as Rihanna has an account bearing her name (again, it’s unverified) that has amassed followers but contains no content. Perhaps they’re onto something, as it seems like for every happy Twitter moments there are a handful of communication breakdowns and apologies.